3177/Enter The Dragon

Enter The Dragon
Date of Scene:	17 November 2017
Location:	Chinatown, Gotham City
Synopsis:	Richard Dragon arrives in Gotham and seeks out Lady Shiva
Cast of Characters:	Lady Shiva, Dragon
Tinyplot:	Shivonic Plague

---

Lady Shiva has posed:
    Such a simple thing has turned into so much more. Shiva had made her challenge only to have her opponent strike a deal. It had sent everyone in his world into a bit of a tailspin, trying to figure out what to do about her. As though there was anything to be done about the force of nature that is Shiva. The allies of Nightwing had put out feelers into the circles of martial artists and the underground, trying to find Richard Dragon. Shiva got the messages first.
    As was her way, she opted to contact Richard directly. She asked for him to meet here, in the city of the Bats. There she maintains a property she uses from time to time. It is there she waits.
    The old dojo is in one of the worst parts of town. The windows are boarded over and the door always secured. Except when Shiva has chosen to visit. The place has been closed for years but she purchased the property and uses it from time to time. Within, the equipment is in good shape and the mats are spread out waiting for use in the center of the main floor. There is dust in some areas but not on those blue mats nor on the martial arts equipment scattered around. Those she maintains. There are locker rooms in the back, a small kitchen area and she has a cot in the back where she can sleep if she chooses to stay there instead of her preferred locations which are more comfortable.
    Tonight, she is resting in the center of those mats in a kneeling position. Her eyes are closed and she is meditating, taking the time to center her chi as she prepares for her night ahead. She has some work to tend to in Chinatown but she needs to be in the right mental state before she heads out. She is dressed in a simple black bodysuit, hands and feet bare. There is a red sash around her waist.

Dragon has posed:
    It had been a moment of clarity in the life of Richard Dragon. The "request" for his presence had come as it was wont to do...in a message that was quickly destroyed in the fires of the closest homeless denizens' barrel of fire, used to heat their food and warm their flesh from the oppressive cold that permeated this part of the World.

    Dragon was often found amongst the homeless. The downtrodden. The oppressed. It was where he found peace, helping those who could not help themselves.

    With a loud sigh, and a shift of his mindset, Richard Dragon had read through the "summons". "Ah Shiva." Dragon began, ignoring the looks from those around him. "It seems you have need of me once more."

    Dragon's eyes look up to the darkened sky in this corner of the country of Canada. The city of Vancouver was a second home to Richard. It was a love of the ocean, the damp, warmer climates, and the freedoms expressed there. Shaking his head, Richard shivers, something that felt strange. "A new beginning. I understand." Who was he talking to? With a bow, Dragon smiles, a wan, humourless smile. "And so. It begins." And he was gone...

    ...until his arrival in Gotham. His distaste was obvious, as his face reflects a disquiet in his soul. Only for a moment does he allow a moment of weakness to inhabit his features...and then it was no longer there. Looking at the door to this "old dojo", Richard takes a moment to reflect. Another chapter. Allowing himself the "pleasure" of a sigh he enters.

    "Hello Shiva. It is good to see you again." The shadows part and Richard Dragon remains.

Lady Shiva has posed:
    At the sound of his voice, Shiva's opens her dark brown eyes and focuses on the man. Just as she remembered him. He never seems to change. Eternal. She can feel him in the room, his chi that powerful of a thing that she should have sensed him before he ever spoke. She did not. It is a testament to the power of this man, to his skill and utter control.
    It is something she respects. There are few in the world that can be placed in that group. A handful. No more.
    She jumps to her feet easily, one moment on her knees, the next on her feet. She bows from the hips deeply to Richard. "Thank you," she says simply, for his responding when he has no reason to. She is driven by whim. He by something deeper she doesn't truly understand. Perhaps if she did, she would stop seeking more.

Dragon has posed:
    Richard Dragon's eyes find Shiva through the darkness, and they regard her with an appraising air, as they were wont to do. His red hair, long and dark in the low-light seems to billow out behind him, as though a strong breeze was blowing - even though there did not seem to be a breeze in the room at all. His face is clean shaven, this time, and his semi-smile was there, a constant irritant to all those he had defeated in battle.

    Watching carefully as Shiva moves, stands, and bows, a deep, respectful bow, Richard waits but a moment to return it. It was no small measure of respect that Richard does what he does next. A moment of true respect. His eyes find the floor, taking themselves off of Shiva for a scant second or two, a moment of deep, spiritual trust. In that moment any great martial artist could end him. As could Shiva.

    "The winds blew in your direction, Lady Shiva. I come where summoned, and arrive where sent. It is truly good to see you, my former student." His eyes then find hers as he straightens from his bow. With a wink, his mischieviousness comes to the fore. "Why am I here?"

Lady Shiva has posed:
    He is one of the few people in the world who will see a true smile from Shiva. She can't help but do so when he gives that wink, his air the same as always. That respect he shows her is appreciated since so few seem to understand her. "I challenged someone." He knows her well enough to realize what that means. She is testing someone's abilities, to see if they are worthy of either the title they carry or the training she has granted. "He struck a deal to postpone the conflict. I assisted him, he got one year. Ten months now," she adds.
    She moves toward the small kitchen area, opening the fridge and pulling out a bottle of water. She picks up a second and holds it up as an offering if he would like one as well.
    "He goes by the codename Nightwing. One of the Batman's people. The others in their family have sought to find you, to ask you to help train him so he will be ready." She twists the top off her bottle and takes a sip before she continues. Her lips are twisted in a smirk as she gives a one-shoulder shrug. "I told them I would find you myself and ask you to train the man. Or any of the others in the group, if you would be willing."

Dragon has posed:
    "Ah." That was it. His hands find themselves behind his back, as he almost "saunters" into the room, his smile still present. Only those that truly knew him could even see that smile, as it looks just like a neutral expression. For Richard Dragon, it was a smile.

    "And this challenge. He is worth it." Statement not question. Richard truly respects Shiva's "talent" for finding new "talent, so to speak. Holding out his right hand, Richard accepts the bottle of water, and nods his head in thanks.

    "Ah." Second time he uses that idiom. "Nightwing. I have heard of him. Interesting." Dragon begins pacing a bit, a bit of a revelation that he was deep in thought. "A protege of Batman, you say. Hmmm. Facinating." Dragon takes a drink from the water bottle after twisting the top off. Stopping mid stride, Dragon regards Shiva once more.

    "Ready for what, exactly?" A poignant question, directly to the heart of the matter.

Lady Shiva has posed:
    Another of those half shrugs as Shiva smiles again. "Ready to fight me and be a challenge. As he stands, he would be a poor showing. I want to give him a chance to prove himself more." She considers a moment then continues. "His mentor has already threatened me for making the challenge. They believe it is a forgone conclusion that it will be to the death. All of them, including the Batgirl who was seeking you. She wishes you to train Nightwing. Also, I think she wants training herself."
    Richard knows her well enough to realize every fight isn't to the death with she challenges. That is never decided until the battle itself. It is not a definite. Nor is it impossible. If he is worthy and shows enough promise, she may very well let him live.
    That she asks for Richard's help shows she hopes he will be that level. Perhaps he would even be able to beat her with the instruction.

Dragon has posed:
    Richard Dragon's eyes scan the room, and finally find their way to Shiva. His hands once more find there way behind his back as he finishes off the water, and places the empty bottle on a nearby counter top. His movements are silent, without sound, as he goes back to considering Shiva's words.

    "I see." Richard actually chuckles, a few titters that was obvious in showing that he was slightly amused. "You always had a strange sense of honour. I respect that. So, you want to fatten him up before chewing him up and spitting him out?"

    Dragon makes his way around the room, scrapping some dust off a shelf with his right index finger, and removing that dust with a quick blow from his lips. Richard than watches as the dust settles in the air, moving in a twist as the air manipulates it in the light, slowly making its way to the ground.

    "Batgirl. Nightwing. Batman." Richard exhales, a slow, controlled breath. "Heroes all." Nightwing nods, as though the decision is made. "I will train them." He looks at Shiva. "No, not for why you think. Not so you can be defeated finally." Richard nods, as though seeing right through her. "To make them better heroes."

Lady Shiva has posed:
    She had hoped that would be his answer. Shiva gives a bow of her head in his direction. He always could see through her. It's part of the strangeness of their relationship. He knows what she is, how she is. Somehow, he still accepts her. Their moral compasses are on opposite sides yet they are the same in so many ways.
    "Your reasons are not important. They are your own and you owe me no explanations, though I appreicate that you are willing to share them with me." It is another of his signs of respect, to give her that much. "I truly appreciate that you are willing to train them. They are already good. They can be so much more." Her tone is almost wistful but the why of that tone is impossible to tell. Perhaps she truly does just want them to be better, not just because she wants to challenge them one by one. She would never admit it and would deny it to her last breath.
    "Do you wish me to arrange introductions or would you like to handle them yourself?"

Dragon has posed:
    Richard Dragon gets a far-away look in his eyes, as though thinking about what Shiva was saying. With a slight nod, Richard then turns to look at Shiva. "I believe you are right. They can be so much more. Even, potentially, your equal." Richard teases, his tone obviously going there.

    "Ah yes! Introductions! Hah. It has been so long since someone has done that for me. You almost make me sound like I am suddenly important, and should be introduced to the great Tony Stark or Bruce Wayne." Was that another note of amusement in the sarcastic reply?

    "I am just a teacher. I am not so important as that. If you feel it will help with the transition from their position as super heroes, to students, than by all means, please, feel free to introduce me. It might make it easier for when the pain comes." Dragon smiles once more. "As their patriarch would tell them, only through pain can true learning commence. You and Batman know that only too well, do you not?"

Lady Shiva has posed:
    "It is one of the immutable truths of the world," Shiva says with another of her brief smiles. "Physical, emotional, mental. It all leads to growth. Without growth, we simply cease to be even if we still live." She takes another long drag off her water bottle, finishing it up. She recaps the empty and places it down beside his on the countertop. "It is sad that so few people understand that. They lament their pain as though it is the enemy when they should embrace it like a lover." She moves then toward the back area, intending to dress for her evening out in the night skyline. "I am certain we can find them on the rooftops. They patrol every night although they change their paths each time. Yet if we make ourselves apparent, they will come to us."
    She turns her head to look over her shoulder at him before she ducks out of the room. "If you would like to try to tonight?"

Dragon has posed:
    "Immutable is a word that is truly harrowing, is it not?" Richard says with a frown. "Truth is another. We all suffer and follow different truths. Huh." Richard nods his head, thinking. "Growth is something we all can truly believe in. Truly." Another quirk of a smile. Was Dragon...joking?

    Richard listens to every word that Shiva says, his attention focused, like a bird of prey following a mouse in the field. "You have grown, Lady Shiva. I would not have thought that of you. Impressive. Perhaps you are not the young girl I once sparred with oh those many years ago. Growth is vital to survival. And you have survived. Helping these heroes." Dragon chuckles, lightly.

    Then, Dragon's eyes burn into hers, penetrating her like a lover as he follows her from the room. "My last query, for tonight at least. What are you truly hoping to get from this?"

Lady Shiva has posed:
    Her lips curve up in a smile as she pauses, hand on the door jam while the other holds the doorway open for the locker area. Humor flashes in her eyes for a moment then it is gone as she answers his question with a single word.

    "Satisfaction."

    Then she disappears into the back, letting the door close behind her.